1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to gun racks, and more particularly pertains to a new and improved portable gun rack for use in vehicles. When individuals are hunting for game from a vehicle, it is necessary to store their rifles or shotguns in a safe, secure and easily accessible location. In order to overcome this problem, the present invention provides a portable gun rack adapted to be received in a space between the front bucket seats of a vehicle and having a barrel support block releasably secured to the vehicle dashboard. The gun rack of the present invention securely retains rifles or shotguns in a readily accessible location and allows free access to the floor mounted shift levers of the vehicle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various types of gun racks are known in the prior art. A typical example of such a gun rack is to be found in U.S. Pat. No. 2,668,645, which issued to P. Pease on Feb. 9, 1954. This patent discloses a locking gun holder secured to a vehicle dashboard for holding rifles or shotguns in an upright position. R. Johnson et al. U.S. Pat. No. 2,775,351, which issued on Dec. 25, 1956, discloses a gun rack adapted to be utilized on a bench type vehicle seat. The device utilizes a plurality of spaced supports provided with U-shaped notches. U.S. Pat. No. 2,919,058, which issued to W. Thompson on Dec. 29, 1959, discloses a gun mount for securing a rifle or shotgun within a vehicle interior. The device includes a resilient U-shaped clip for engagement with a gun barrel and a gun butt support cup for engagement with the gun butt. U.S. Pat. No. 3,477,586, which issued to L. Haluska on Nov. 11, 1969, discloses a portable gun rack adapted for use on a bench type vehicle seat. The device includes a pair of spaced parallel side rails having hooked top end portions adapted for engagement over the top edge of the vehicle seat back. A pair of transverse support members are mounted in parallel spaced relation on the side rails for support of rifles or shotguns. U.S. Pat. No. 3,746,177, which issued to D. Vilotti on July 17, 1973, discloses a portable magnetic rack for guns which includes a rectangular block provided with a plurality of U-shaped notches and having a magnetic back surface adapted for engagement with the metallic exterior surface of a vehicle. PG,4
While the above mentioned devices are suited for their intended usage, none of these devices disclose a portable gun rack adapted for use in vehicles having front bucket seats and providing ready access to rifles or shotguns while retaining sufficient clearance for operation of floor mounted vehicle shift levers. Additional features of the present invention, not disclosed by the aforesaid devices, is the provision of a gun support rack which utilizes a VELCRO fastening strap for retaining gun barrels in U-shaped notches of a barrel support block, and an adjustable length strut perpendicularly attached to the barrel support block and gun butt support box. Inasmuch as the art is relatively crowded with respect to these various types of gun racks, it can be appreciated that there is a continuing need for and interest in improvements to such gun racks, and in this respect, the present invention addresses this need and interest.